Q With the Budget coming up on Wednesday, what one thing would you ask the Chancellor to do to make it easier for retailers or small businesses right now?

A The best way George Osborne can help businesses (big or small) is to ignore most of the advice from bankers, bishops or business schools and do as little as possible. His previous Budgets were designed to set the scene for recovery and I believe they are starting to work. The way to restore much needed confidence is to stick to the plan and resist any temptation to try anything else.

But I do have one big wish – a realistic review of business rates. With fewer shoppers on the high street and incomes growing slower than inflation, retail sales are struggling to beat last year (don’t be deceived by the confident blip in the February statistics). Landlords have become realistic with rents reduced by up to 25pc but rates continue to rise in line with the retail price index. Consequently our rates bill, which used to be 33pc of the rent, has now risen to 42pc. We have turned down several potential sites where the rent was reasonable but rates were so high we couldn’t justify the investment.

A rates freeze would help, but the Government should also reverse their decision to delay the review of rateable values that is now due. The current levels were set in 2008 when property prices were at their peak. The sooner rateable values are brought in line with lower rents, the better.

There is another measure that would help every business without costing the Chancellor a penny. We all welcomed the plans to tackle red tape but still wait for signs that reduced regulation is becoming a practical reality (even if that means disregarding some European Union directives).

Apart from being the shortest Budget speech on record, my suggested lack of new measures will avoid the dangers of unintended consequences, it will prevent clever correspondents talking about “the devil in the detail”, and, apart from a respite on business rates, gives the accountants little to talk about at their big breakfast budget seminars.

There is nothing wrong with a boring Budget.

Q My pest control business has just acquired a competitor which provides a complementary service. I’m happy with the deal, but I worry about integrating the new staff members. The company I bought seems to have had a very different culture. How do I go about combining two very different teams?

A There isn’t a foolproof formula to follow after a takeover, every acquisition is different, but I don’t believe you can have two cultures in the same company. It is, therefore, either their way of working or yours and, assuming your way works well, you will ultimately have to establish your culture in the new acquisition.

Start by telling everyone, from senior management to shop floor, all about your existing business – what it does and how it does it, but don’t expect anyone to change overnight. Go and meet as many people as possible and try to understand what makes them tick. In the process you will learn a lot about your new business, and will almost certainly identify some real superstars (but they may not be the senior managers!)

Whatever you do, you will be viewed with suspicion. The newly acquired colleagues won’t trust you until they see that you understand their business. Find some ways to make a mark – improve their employment package, get rid of some silly rules or, better still, find a way to increase sales and improve their bonus.

While all this is going on there will be plenty of ways to improve profitability. It will take years to change their culture but within the first few weeks, by saving on overheads, you are bound to find a few ways to improve the bottom line.

Q You have recommended bringing in the HR department to solve a problem. The difficulty of most small businesses is that they do not have – cannot justify or afford – a HR department. If you have five or so employees what do you do?

A I totally take your point. The increase in legislation and red tape has made life particularly difficult for the smallest companies. There is a danger that the owner spends so much time complying with legislation there is no time left to run the business. I believe that businesses with fewer than five employees should be exempt from most employment law.

That might go against some European legislation but the economy would benefit. New recruits would know that they don’t get the same security but there is no doubt small companies would be much keener to take on new staff.

I suggested the use of HR because there are times when it is better for the boss to take a back seat. But I don’t recommend bringing in an outsider to deal with delicate issues that require talking to colleagues face to face. Sorry, but in a small business this is another job the boss must do.